Choi (1998) noted criticism in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis included:
incomplete financial information,
inappropriate accounting standards and inconsistent application of such standards.
ASEAN leaders did not prioritise the best options available for disclosure of financial information in the post-crisis period.
At the time global forces were already active (such as ‘Big 4’ accounting firms) and lobbying for the harmonization of
accounting practices across national boundaries.
These pressures to adopt IFRS have flowed into the ASEAN region.
Wolfensohn, president of the World Bank (1995-2005)
summarised disclosure problems:
‘The culture in the region has not been one of disclosure;
if you go back further it was a culture of a smallish number of wealthy people.’
The next sections of the article explain the background of IFRS adoption in the selected ASEAN countries,
which utilise some comments from the authors’ one-to-one interviews.